Stand Alone Pages on 'Musings of an Old Curmudgeon'

30 November 2020

Douglas Murray: Western Europe Unable to Accept the East’s Different Viewpoint

The leftist elites in Western Europe hate Hungary and Poland because they are determined to remain European and Christian.

From 
Magyar Nemzet via ReMix

By Imre Csekő and András Kárpáti

"History has vindicated Hungary's migration policy," said Murray, who is the best-selling author of "The Strange Death of Europe: Immigration, Identity, Islam" and associate editor for The Spectator

Many European conflicts along the East-West fault line are caused by the fact that Western Europe is unable to accept the East's different approaches on key political and social issues, acclaimed British author and political commentator Douglas Murray told daily Magyar Nemzet in an interview.

Murray believes that Eastern and Western Europe speak past one another, and Western European countries often resort to threats, which he says is quite unfortunate.

"Instead of the often intentional misunderstandings that arise, more attention needs to be devoted towards actually understanding each other," Murray said. "While it is obvious that various criticisms can be made about the internal functioning of other countries, it is important to deal with an understanding of why certain decisions are made. I find it extremely damaging that Western Europe cannot accept that things are not going the way they like in the eastern part of the continent."

Asked about the prevalence of critical voices towards Hungary in Western Europe, Murray said that was a result of the dominance of leftist views in the West.

"In Western Europe, left-wing ideas dominate, and they are characterized by a peculiar view of history, according to which there is an inevitable direction of historical development, and this breeds a kind of impatience and intolerance," Murray said in the interview. "Today, there is often an American liberal view that places extreme emphasis on freedom. Obviously, freedom is an important value, but its exclusive emphasis leads to distorted results such as the legalization of hard drugs or the downsizing of the police. And the cult of freedom is organically linked to the blending of the conceptual and concrete notions of equality."

Murray also said that for a meaningful left-right dialogue, both sides should exercise restraint and keep in check their more radical elements.

"I want the left were able to break down the radical elements, because in every society there is a need for dialogue between the right and the left. There are traditionally left-wing suggestions that can be important at times," Murray said. "I would be happy if the sensible leftists could get rid of the mentally ill. The right, too, must always keep its own insane in check."

Murray used Hungary as an example to make his point, saying, "The right is much better at distancing itself from the far-right movements. The case of Jobbik in your country is a clear example of this."

Murray added that history has by now validated Hungary's tough stance on migration despite ample criticism heaped on the country dating back to 2015.

"It is true that several European politicians have spectacularly redefined their views — one good example of this is Macron, who now has a very similar position on migration as the Hungarian cabinet — but one shouldn't expect him to apologize for that," said Murray.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Comments are subject to deletion if they are not germane. I have no problem with a bit of colourful language, but blasphemy or depraved profanity will not be allowed. Attacks on the Catholic Faith will not be tolerated. Comments will be deleted that are republican (Yanks! Note the lower case 'r'!), attacks on the legitimacy of Pope Francis as the Vicar of Christ (I know he's a material heretic and a Protector of Perverts, and I definitely want him gone yesterday! However, he is Pope, and I pray for him every day.), the legitimacy of the House of Windsor or of the claims of the Elder Line of the House of France, or attacks on the legitimacy of any of the currently ruling Houses of Europe.